Now President Obama Must Play It Cool While the Republican Party Walks Off a Cliff

Remember just Tuesday morning, when we were discussing how Republican senators in purplish states were taking a big gamble if they agreed to stonewall the president's constitutional duty to appoint a replacement for Antonin Scalia?

Remember this scene from the most underrated American film of all time, Little Big Man?

"We believe the American people need to decide who is going to make this appointment rather than a lame duck president," said Majority Whip John Cornyn (R-TN). When asked if they would start the process after the new president took office or if they would consider doing it in the lame duck session, Cornyn replied "No, after the next president is selected. That way the American people have a voice in the process." The Republican members of the Judiciary Commitee were unanimous in agreeing not to move forward with any Obama nominee for the Supreme Court, said Cornyn, who was in the meeting. Sen. Bob Corker (R-TN), who was not in the meeting, later said that GOP senators were told at their weekly lunch that the Judiciary Committee Republicans were in unanimous agreement on the strategy. Meanwhile, Judiciary Committee Chair Charles Grassley (R-IA) and the rest of the committee Republicans sent a letter to McConnell outlining their plan to block any Obama nominee for Scalia's seat. Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) said that "there's no use starting a process that's not going to go anywhere and we are going to let the next president decide," when asked why there would be no hearings. When TPM asked if he had political concerns about the decision not to move forward with a nominee, Graham responded."I have zero concerns politically." "I think this is what they would do," Graham said referring to Senate Democrats. "For them to say they wouldn't do this is a lie."

The president's next move is obvious.

He finds the most ridiculously qualified candidate he can find among whatever demographic or social group is most disadvantageous to the Republicans, and he puts that candidate up as quickly as possible. He does event after event, with the candidate by his side. He campaigns for Senate candidates in New Hampshire, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Wisconsin, and Illinois, all places with vulnerable Republican incumbents, and he brings the nominee along with him.

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To elect a Democratic president in the fall is to elect this wonderfully qualified person, a credit to the American dream and to our greatness as a people, to the Supreme Court as well. Could it be that the Republican Party's capacity to walk in lockstep off a cliff–known to medical science as The Schiavo Syndrome–has now surpassed the Democratic Party's capacity to step on its own dick when presented with a political opportunity? If the president has brought about that turn of events, his whole two terms have been worth electing him in the first place.